Heat exchange apparatus



Dec. 1, 1942. SHORT 2,303,664

HEAT EXCHANGE APPARATUS (CHIPICE-COMPACTOR) Filed Sept. 23, 1940 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR wFran/4; 5/20/19 EYS Patented Dec. 1, 1942 HEAT EXCHANGE APPARATUS (CHIPICE-COMPAGTOR) Frank Short, Canton Center, Conn, assignor to Flakice Corporation, a corporation of Delaware Application September 23, 1940, Serial No. 357,943

3- Claims.

This application is a continuation-impart of my application Serial No. 187,761, filed *Jan-.

uary 29, 1938.

The embodiments of the invention hereinafter described are especially concerned with the manufacture of fragments or chips of congealed or frozen fluids. The fragments or chips may be compressed or compacted into larger units by the apparatus shown or used in their fragmentary form. Further, the machine described in the present embodiment is suitable for manufacturing fragments or chips of ice and compacting them into larger units. The term ice is used in its broader sense to include frozen liquids or liquid mixtures etc., such for example as fruit juices, creams and the like.

In the manufacture of edible products or substances which are to come in contact with edible products, cleanliness is an important consideration. One object of this invention, therefore, is to provide a refrigerating apparatus which may be easily and completely sterilized and which will minimize the possibility of foreign substances contaminating the product. Another object of this invention is to eliminate stuffing boxes in refrigerant lines, thereby reducing the leakage of refrigerant and, in some cases, the consequent deleterious physiological effects on the operator. Another object is to provide an apparatus which is suitable for either domestic or commercial, use,

and which may be easily and safely operated by I anyone.

These and other objects which will be apparent or described may best be appreciated by reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is an axial vertical sectional view of the chipping machine;

Figure 2 is a top plan view of the water cup, showing certain associated parts in section;

Figure 3 is a sectional view of the chipping blades and turning tube taken on line 33 of Figure 1;

Figure 4 is an axial sectional view of a compacter unit combined with a chipping machine such as shown in Figure 1; and

Figure 5 is a top plan view of the compacter shown in Figure 4 (partly in section) Referring to Figure 1, numeral I indicates a freezing surface which, in the illustrative embodiment here shown, is the internal surface of a cylindrical container, generally indicated at 45. The material used in constructing the freezing surface is selected in accordance with the char-- acteristics of the liquid to be frozen and the corresponding ability of the surface to retain its high polish.

An outer wall 2 of the cylindrical container 45 forms with freezing surface I an annular space 4 for confining the refrigerant. The refrigerant is introduced into space 4 through inlet connection 5 (shown in dotted lines) and leaves through outlet connection 6 (also shown in dotted lines). A battle 3 preferably of helical form directs the flow'of refrigerant in space 4 to refrigerate the surface substantially uniformly. Either a primary refrigerant such as ammonia or a secondary refrigerant such as brine may be used.- Suitable insulation 1 is applied to the outside of cylindrical container 45.

The water or other fiuidto be congealed or frozen flows from water cup 9 through nozzles 8. (See Figure 2.) Preferably the nozzles should be arranged so that no liquid flows onto freezing surface 5 in the region just preceding, at, and following chippingblades I1. It is also desirable that the nozzles be progressively spaced so that more liquid will flow onto the bare freezing surface just after chipping than further alongwhere there is an insulating layer of ice to 'slow up the freezing rate. The water or other liquid to be frozen is indicated at Hi. It may be fed at just the proper rate to be frozen, producing a white or cloudy solid, or it may be flushed over the surface to produce a clear solid, and the excess directed into drip channel 20 by outwardly curved portion 2| near the bottom of the freezing surface. The liquid flowing into channel 2!} may be recirculated by a pump (not shown) One method of adding liquid to water cup 9 is illustrated at H. A container containing the liquid to be frozen is fitted with a rubber stopper 44 having a tube 43 extending therethrough. The container is inverted and supported on the cover plate 42 of the cylindrical container 45. The tube 43 extends down into water cup 9 to the point where the liquid level is to be maintained. Liquid will flow from the container into water cup 9 only when the lower end of the tube is exposed. Such a method of feed is suitable for use with small scale apparatus. With large scale apparatus other well-known methods of maintaining constant liquid level may be used.

The frozen solids are removed from the freezing surface by the chipping blades H. The chipping blades are preferably provided with chisel edges (see Figure 3) so that entering the edge into the ice layer on the freezing surface I produces a strong lateral push to remove a narrow chip. In fact, the lateral push will be several times as great as the radial force of the chipping blades II on account of the wedge action The chipping blades II are supported by links I4 which'are in turn supported by a bar I5 connected to a turning tube I2. Turning tube I2, which also supports water cup 9, is itself supported by a step bearing I9 and held in place by a second bearing 4I in the cover plate 42. A spider I9 rigidly supported by the base of cylindrical container 45 supports the step bearing I8. The spider I9 is designed to interfere as little as possible with the fall of chips after they have been wedged from freezing surface I. The chipping blades are periodically wedged into the sheet of ice by pressure links I3 actuated by operating rod I5. The wedging action of blades II, in combination with the toggle action of the pressure links I3, will call for only a small force on the operating rod I5, hence low total power consumption.

Operating rod I5 is coaxial with turning tube I2 and extends downwardly therethrough. It is connected to pressure link I3 by pin 41 which moves in slots 45 of the turning tube I2. The operating rod I5 is given a reciprocating motion by a walking beam 21 supported by beam pivot 28. Walking beam 21 is connected to operating rod I5 by means of a beam link 25 and a cross head 23 which is rotatabiy mounted on rod I5. Cross head 23 is held in place by a shoulder of rod I5 and by a stop 24 and lock nut 25. The power for operating walking beam 21 is supplied by a motor 33 which, through reducing gear 34, turns crank pin disk 32. A connecting rod connects walking beam 21 at cross pin 29 to crank pin disk 32 at crank pin 3I.

To avoid the possible building of a mass of ice at the top of the freezing surface, which might interfere with proper distribution of liquid from nozzle 8, an insulating flexible rim 22 is provided on to which the liquid first falls. Ice if formed on this at times will readily be chipped off as the chipping blades extend upward for that purpose.

mechanism by a pawl and ratchet device. A

ratchet wheel 39 is non-rotatably mounted upon turning tube I2 and held in place by lock pin 45. The pawl actuator 35, connected to walking beam 21, connects with a pawl finger 31 of pawl rod 35 and causes a pawl spring 38 to engageand push one of the teeth of ratchet drive 39, driving tuming tube I2 through lock pin 40.

This drive occurs on the up-stroke of operating rod I5 after the chipping operation. Thus, the chipping blades I! are moved to position for the next chip removal, and are assured of a substantially radial action.

In operation, the chipping mechanism is rotated in a step-wise manner to move the respective chipping blades slightly over the edge portions of the ice sheet that has been formed over the freezing surface. Then the operating rod I5 causes chipping blades I! to be pressed against the ice sheet near its edges. A slow wedging action is obtained by the radial movement of the blades, giving time for the shear action to remove the edge portions from the sheet and freezing surface, in the form of frozen chips.

Referring to Figures 4 and 5, the chips 53 from the chip making machine 5I are allowed to fall on a rotatable pocket table 55. Pocket table 55 is in the form of an annular ring and supports a series of pockets or compartments 54 formed by wedge-shaped member 14. A baiiie 51 may be Rotary motion is imparted to the chipping to direct the flow of chips into the pockets 54. A

stationary wall 15 at the outer periphery of the pocket table 55 and a second stationary-wall l5 at the inner periphery of the pocket table serve to retain the chips in the pockets 54.' In this embodiment the thrust hearing may be replaced by a suitable thrust bearing at the top of the shaft I2 as, for example, by making the bearing 4| (Figure 1) a thrust bearing in a known manner.

A pressure chamber I2 is provided within the wall 15. The pressure chamber I2 is divided into two compartments I1 and II. In compartment ll a heavy spring II is held in compression by a plate I5. Compartment TI is slightly larger than compartment I5, thus forming a shoulder I9 which serves to retain plate I0. Compartment I8 is provided with a light spring 59 abutting at one end plate III and at the other end a piston or plunger 58. When springs II and 59 are expanded, the plunger 55 abuts the inner periphery of pocket table 55.

At the outer periphery of pocket table 55 and opposite plunger 55, a second plunger 56 is provided. Plunger 55 is operated by suitable mechanism to give it the necessary travel and force. preferably by a toggle action more or less diagrammatically shown in Figures 4 and 5 wherein motion is imparted'to plunger 55 by means of toggle links 5! and connecting rod 52. Connecting rod 52 is connected to crank pin 53 on crank disk 54 driven by motor 55- through pinion 55.

On the down-stroke of connecting rod 52, plunger 55 is forced through one of the pockets 54 in alignment therewith and with plunger 55 and its associated parts, into compartment 15, thereby forcing the charge of chips against plunger 58. Spring 59 offers little resistance and plunger 59 recedes until it hits plate I9. The heavy compression of spring II tends to resist further motion of plunger 58 and the charge of chips 51 is compacted into a mass or briquette 59.

On the return stroke of plunger 55, plate Ill holds back the heavy pressure of spring 'I I, allowing the light spring 69 to push the briquette n 4.

back into the empty pocket 54. The spring 59 may beattached at its ends to the end plate I. and to the plunger 58 so that in its expanded position it prevents the plunger 58 from leaving the chamber I2. When the plunger 55 is clear of pocket 54, the pocket table 55 isrotated one pocket in a clockwise direction as viewed in Figure 5 by a mechanism (not shown). A fresh charge of chips is thus moved in front of compression chamber I2. stripper 50 pushes the briquette 59 out of the pocket and allows it to fall through aperture 13 into a storage bin below (not shown).

Alid 58-is provided to keep chips from falling into the two pockets which are operated on by plunger 55 and stripper 50.

Considering the apparatus as a whole, it will be evident that it is simple and durable in construction. Since it is easily and completely insulated and requires only a small amount of power for its operation, the operating cost is low. The construction is such that the refrigerating surface and the blades may be readily sterilized with steam or boiling water. The refrigerating surface is enclosed and thus kept free from dust or other contaminating substances. It will thus be seen that this invention comprises an art and an apparatus both of an essentially practical On the next stroke, the

nature in which the several objects referred to above are attained.

As the art herein described may be'carried out in various ways and as the apparatus may be companying drawings is to be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense.

I claim:

1. In apparatus for compacting fragments of a congealed fluid, in combination, rotatable means including a ring of compartments for confining said fragments, a compression chamber, means for forcing said fragments into said chamber, means for applying pressure to said fragments in said chamber to form a. briquette, and means for removing said briquette fromsaid chamber.

2. In apparatus for compacting fragments of a congealed fluid, in combination, rotatable means including a ring'of compartments for confining said fragments, a compression chamber, means for forcing said fragments into said chamber and for applying pressure to said fragments to form a briquette, spring means for returning said briquette to one of said compartments, and means for removing said briquette from said compartment.

3. In apparatus for compacting fragmentsof a congealed ,fluid, in combination, rotatable means including an annular ring of compartments for collecting and confining said fragments, a compression chamber within the said ring, means external. to the said ring including a plunger to force the said fragments from one of the said compartments into the said compression chamher, the said plunger, compartment and compression chamber being in alignment at the time, spring means for exerting a pressure on the said fragments to form them into a briquette, means for returning the said briquette to the said compartment, means for ejecting said briquette from said compartment, and means for rotating said annular ring to move a fresh charge of fragments in front of said plunger.

. FRANK SHORT. 

